Easter Eggshttp://www.maclife.com/taxonomy/term/10249/all
enTerminal 101: 4 emacs Easter eggshttp://www.maclife.com/article/columns/terminal_101_4_emacs_easter_eggs
<!--paging_filter--><p><em><a href="http://www.maclife.com/tags/terminal_101"><img src="/files/u12635/terminal_101_teaser_52.png" width="150" height="150" class="graphic-right" /></a>Every Monday, we'll show you how to do something new and simple with Apple's built-in command line application. You don't need any fancy software, or a knowledge of coding to do any of these. All you need is a keyboard to type 'em out!<br /></em><br />Easter eggs are fun, hidden features that are implemented in software for the user to find. The developers of emacs (the text editor built into Mac OS X, and many other Unix-based systems) included many hidden Easter eggs to be discovered by its users. We’ll highlight a few of them here for you to try out.</p><h3>1. Mud</h3><p><a class="thickbox" href="/files/u12635/emacs_1_0.png"><img src="/files/u12635/emacs_1_0.png" width="620" height="455" class="thickbox" /></a></p><p><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MUD" target="_blank">MUDs</a> (or Multi-User Dungeon) are an old-school game play experience that allowed multiple people to play text-based role playing games over the Internet. While most of these games have died down in popularity, you can still experience a similar text-based game in emacs.&nbsp; <br /><br />Simply open Terminal, and type the following command followed by enter:</p><pre>emacs -batch -l dunnet</pre><p>Once launched, you’ll be able to interact with the game by typing commands as you’re lead throughout the text-based world. Type “help” if you get stuck.</p><h3>2. Life</h3><p><a class="thickbox" href="/files/u12635/emacs_2_0.png"><img src="/files/u12635/emacs_2_0.png" width="620" height="455" class="thickbox" /></a></p><p>Grow your very own life form by using emacs' “life” program. Once it runs, it’ll begin generating randomly. It’s a cool cellular automaton on your Mac (in fact, it might very well be the <em>only</em> cellular automaton on your Mac). To give it a spin, type the following command into the Terminal:</p><pre>emacs </pre><p>Then, press esc on your keyboard, followed by the “x” key, and then type in “life.” After pressing enter, a randomly generated cell will begin forming on your screen. It’s pretty nifty, and extremely random. See how many generations can be generated! Ours went through 204.</p><h3>3. Tetris</h3><p><a class="thickbox" href="/files/u12635/emacs_3_0.png"><img src="/files/u12635/emacs_3_0.png" width="620" height="455" class="thickbox" /></a></p><p>Want to play a game of Tetris without downloading any expensive app? Don’t worry! It’s built right into emacs. Simply use the following command, and you’ll be trying to fit all of the pieces together:</p><pre>emacs</pre><p>Then, press esc on your keyboard, followed by the “x” key, and then type in “tetris.” After pressing enter, you’ll be instantly thrown into a game of Tetris. Use the left and right arrow keys to move the pieces, use the up arrow to change the piece direction, and use the down arrow to instantly move the piece to its bottom-most location.</p><h3>4. Free Psychoanalysis</h3><p><a class="thickbox" href="/files/u12635/emacs_4.png"><img src="/files/u12635/emacs_4.png" width="620" height="455" class="thickbox" /></a></p><p>So, have all of the April Fool’s Day pranks gotten a little out of hand? Not a problem, because your Mac includes a free program that will give you free psychoanalysis for all of the pain you’ve encountered today (not to be used in place of a real doctor, however). Simply use the following command:</p><pre>emacs</pre><p>Then, press esc on your keyboard, followed by the “x” key, and then type in “doctor.” After pressing enter, you’ll be instantly thrown into the psychotherapist’s office. Describe your problem, then each time you’re done talking, press the return key twice. The “doctor” will offer up advice, and talk you through your problems. <br /><br /><em>Cory Bohon is a freelance technology writer, indie Mac and iOS developer, and amateur photographer. Follow this article's author on Twitter.</em></p>http://www.maclife.com/article/columns/terminal_101_4_emacs_easter_eggs#commentsColumnsDoctorEasterEaster EggseggslifeMacMudTerminalTerminal 101tetrisMacHow-TosMon, 01 Apr 2013 17:51:41 +0000Cory Bohon16624 at http://www.maclife.comHow to Use the Secrets in the OS X Menu Bar http://www.maclife.com/article/howtos/how_use_secrets_os_x_menu_bar
<!--paging_filter--><p>The Menu Bar may seem like the most static of OS X's features, but it's actually got a few tricks up its sleeve that most users aren't aware of. For one, there are a few hidden features that you can activate to help you track your computer's status at a glance, and you can rearrange the Menu Bar items in any order you please. Read on to find out how.</p><h3>Rearranging and Removing Menu Bar Items</h3><p>Rearranging and removing menu bar items is an easy task when using the Command modifier while clicking and dragging on items in the menu bar.</p><p><a class="thickbox" href="/files/u12635/menubar_1.png"><img src="/files/u12635/menubar_1.png" width="425" height="229" style="border: 1px solid black;" class="thickbox" /></a><br /><br />To rearrange the menu bar items, hold down the Command key while clicking and dragging the items around. To remove an item from the menu bar, simply hold down the Command key while clicking and dragging it off the menu bar. When you release the click, the item will disappear in a puff of smoke. <br /><br />This feature works on all Apple-supplied menu items, and a few third-party items.</p><h3>Accessing Hidden Features of Menu Bar Items</h3><p>Many Apple menu bar items include hidden features that can be accessed by holding down the Option key while clicking on the item.</p><p><a class="thickbox" href="/files/u12635/menubar_2.png"><img src="/files/u12635/menubar_2.png" width="430" height="381" style="border: 1px solid black;" class="thickbox" /></a></p><p><br />Some of our favorites are:</p><p>- Change input and output device by Option + Clicking on audio icon in menu bar</p><p>- See channel and security information by Option + Clicking on Wi-Fi icon</p><p>- Get battery condition by Option + Clicking on battery icon</p><p>- See Bluetooth status and additional information by Option + Clicking on bluetooth icon</p><h3>Enabling Hidden Menu Bar Items</h3><p>Another secret of the menu bar in OS X is the unknown and hidden menu bar items that are not enabled by default in OS X.</p><p><a class="thickbox" href="/files/u12635/menubar_3.png"><img src="/files/u12635/menubar_3.png" width="620" height="299" class="thickbox" /></a><br /><br />You can enable these items by opening a new Finder window, pressing Command + Shift + G, and typing in the following path:</p><pre>/System/Library/CoreServices/Menu Extras/</pre><p>Here, you can double-click on any of the items with a “.menu” file extension to enable them. <br /><br />Here’s just a few of the extra menu bar items that you can activate:</p><p>- <strong>Eject.menu</strong> - Lets you eject disks from the menu bar</p><p>-<strong> Displays.menu</strong> - Lets you change the resolution of your screen(s)</p><p>- <strong>TextInput.menu</strong> - Lets you bring up the character viewer and on-screen keyboard<br /><br /><em>Cory Bohon is a freelance technology writer, indie Mac and iOS developer, and amateur photographer. Follow this article's author, <a href="http://twitter.com/coryb/" target="_blank">Cory Bohon on Twitter</a>.</em></p>http://www.maclife.com/article/howtos/how_use_secrets_os_x_menu_bar#commentsEasterEaster EggseggsFeatureshiddenitemitemsMacmenumenu barMacHow-TosMon, 30 Apr 2012 19:46:41 +0000Cory Bohon13902 at http://www.maclife.com8 iOS Apps to Get You In the Easter Moodhttp://www.maclife.com/article/gallery/8_ios_apps_get_you_easter_mood
<!--paging_filter--><p>We're just days away from Easter Sunday, and for many that can mean a prevalence of cute bunnies, colorful eggs, and overstuffed baskets in the immediate future. If you need a little help with the weekend plans, whether it's finding the best egg-coloring techniques, keeping the kids entertained for a bit, or simply locating a couple games with some holiday flair, we've got you covered with this assortment of Easter-themed apps. And many of them are free, so you can save the rest of your budget for elaborate basket fillings and absurdly large hams.</p>http://www.maclife.com/article/gallery/8_ios_apps_get_you_easter_mood#commentsGalleryAppLifeAppsEasterEaster EggsgamesHolidaysiOSiPadiPhoneiPodThu, 05 Apr 2012 15:43:55 +0000Andrew Hayward13733 at http://www.maclife.comThe Week's 10 Hottest Apple News Stories, December 30http://www.maclife.com/article/gallery/weeks_10_hottest_apple_news_stories_december_30
<!--paging_filter-->http://www.maclife.com/article/gallery/weeks_10_hottest_apple_news_stories_december_30#commentsGalleryAmazonappleBoxeeEaster EggsGalaxy NexusGmailIMAPiPadiPad 2iphoneiphone 5jailbreakkindleKindle FireLaw & ApplenewspushsamnsungSteve Jobstop tenSat, 31 Dec 2011 01:55:29 +0000J Keirn-Swanson13018 at http://www.maclife.com10 Apple Easter Eggs You May Have Missedhttp://www.maclife.com/article/gallery/10_apple_easter_eggs_you_may_have_missed
<!--paging_filter--><p><img src="/files/u12635/ee_teaser.png" width="150" height="120" class="graphic-right" />Apple has a history of placing easter eggs -- hidden, and sometimes funny objects, text, or apps -- in their hardware and software over the years. We've compiled a gallery of our favorite easter eggs that have appeared both in Apple hardware and software over the years. Read on and tally off how many you've seen! <br /><br />Did we miss something? Make sure to leave us a comment! <br /><br /><em>Follow this article's author, <a href="http://twitter.com/coryb" target="_blank">Cory Bohon on Twitter</a>.</em></p>http://www.maclife.com/article/gallery/10_apple_easter_eggs_you_may_have_missed#commentsGalleryappleEaster EggshardwareLeopardMacMac OS XMacintosh 128ksoftwareSteve JobsTigerMacWed, 28 Dec 2011 18:08:57 +0000Cory Bohon12957 at http://www.maclife.com